Mental Muscle: 4 Body Postures for a Better Brain

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The brain largely controls the body, but the body can also
influence the brain, by the feedback it sends up the nervous
system. In fact, the body and mind work together to create our
perceptions of the world.

Researchers have looked at how the brain interprets the signals
coming into it from the rest of the body. Here are some of the
ways you can use your body to improve your mind.

Smiling can bring feelings of calm and happiness

Smiling for no reason may trick the brain and make people feel
less stressed, and happier, studies have suggested. In
one experiment, participants were asked to hold chopsticks in
their mouths, a pose that activated their facial muscles as if
they were smiling. The researchers found that these participants
did better at stress-inducing tasks than did their counterparts
who performed the tests with a straight face.

In a similar experiment, published in 1988, participants who were
forced to smile by holding a pen in their mouths rated cartoons
as funnier, compared with others who weren't forced to smile.

Open your arms to feel powerful

Taking certain poses can create a feeling of power. Research
suggests that holding a posture that opens up the body and
expands personal space may even alter hormone levels, making a
person feel more powerful and more willing to take risks.

In one study, participants were asked to take either low- or
high-power poses for few minutes, and were then given $2
to keep or gamble. The results showed the high-power posers were
more likely to risk their money for the chance to double it.

The researchers said although postures associated with power may
seem somehow manly to some, they appear to make women feel
powerful as well.

Nap to be smarter

Taking a nap may do more than give your exhausted brain a break.
Studies have shown that, similar to the effects of a good night's
sleep, naps during the day serve to boost
memory, learning and mental performance.

Take the Zen pose to calm down

It may seem that meditation has to do with only the mind, but
some researchers suggest that, in fact, putting the body into a
meditative posture and breathing deeply, regulates and
clears the mind, according to a 2008 study published in the
journal PLOS ONE.

It is possible that placing one's focus on the brain mechanisms
that control posture and breathing has a calming effect on the
mind, the researchers said.